We had 3 different light setups for the moths and also we had moth wine
ropes.
People and especially the kids were very satisfied.
We attracted about 100 moths and we identified 20 species in *only 3 hours*.

We would like to thanks everyone those joined to our event.

The activity took place at Las Arrieras Nature Reserve, in the Caribbean lowlands of the country, being one of the most diverse regions of Costa Rica! The Reserve protects more than 60 acres of tropical rainforest, rivers, swamps and it also have small patches of disturbed habitat that are in process of reforestation. The variety of habitats enables a lot of niches that moths occupy, resulting in a massive diversity of species!

The event was held on July 27-28. Luck was on our side, as we had perfect climate conditions, despite this being a very rainy place (it is a Rainforest after all). Twelve people participated in the moth-watching event, anxious to learn about these mysterious creatures.

We had three different setups for the moths to be attracted to light (blacklight and fluorescent bulbs were used). Turning on our lights at 18:00, the activity of moths started to warm as the night advanced. The firsts species came from the Crambidae and Pyralidae families, followed by other groups like Notodontidae, Geometridae and Arctiinae appearing later on.

People were especially attracted to the diversity in forms and colors of geometers and tiger moths, but what really caught all of our attention was the enormous Automeris belti with its striking eyelike patterns in the hindwings!

But we not only saw moths, we had nightwalks in the inside of the forest, where we found more insects and frogs! We played a Bingo with the species of moths that were appearing at the traps and games regarding the tropical nature of our country! In the traps we also had the presence of other insects such as praying mantis, giant cockroaches, dobsonflies, beetles, a couple of mantidflies and even a Bullet Ant (the insect responsible of one the most painful stings in the world!).

By the end of the night, everyone was completely satisfied because of the high diversity of moths that we saw and the time spent meeting people that are also interested in this amazing group of insects!

Las Arrieras Nature Reserve showed us more than 120 species of macromoths in only 6 hours! The tropics are incredible and we only can imagine the infinite mysteries that this group is hiding!

Two moth setups were placed- one near the entrance of the office, while the other was placed in our office’s Butterfly Garden. 

Glad to share that our office backyard is home to over 15 species of moths that were recorded in our backyard itself. Topics regarding moth identification, behaviour, breeding biology and habitats were discussed through informative activities such as moth themed quizzes and moth tambola. The participants were fascinated to spot  the Beet Webworm Moth which was around us through the event.

We had received registrations from 45 participants, but due to rains only 15 were able to make it. Overall we received a positive response on the event organized and we are grateful to have been invited by National Moth Week and Dr. Shubalaxmi Vaylure to guide us in conducting this event.

For the first time we made mothing event in Slovakia. The organizer was the project Land of Bees, which educates about pollinators, mainly bees. But this year we started a special program about butterflies and moths.  

Our event was held on July 25, 2019. Mothing attracted not only moths, but also people and kids from our local community. We were also pleased by a visitor – 13-year-old enthusiastic entomologist that was talking with such passion about his experiences. We experienced that nature and insects are still attractive for kids. 

We observed approximately 15 species, forexample Phragmatobia fuliginosa, Chiasmia clathrate, Acronicta megacephala, Ematurga atomaria, Chlorissa clorar. Our visitors and even we were so surprised how diverse, colorful and fascinating the moths can be.  

We hope everybody enjoyed this night and we will continue 5^th of August with second Moth night. 

Thanks to Mudar’s interest in moths, Syria is on National Moth Week’s world map for thefirst time since it was started in 2012. He will be setting up lights near a lake in the Mashqita area to observe and photograph moths and invites others to join him.

“I like nature and photographing nature, but I have just started my second year following butterflies and moths,” said Mudar, who adds that he also will be working on the “first Syrian encyclopedia about Lepidoptera.”

“After I saw the event announcement on the National Moth Week website, I said to myself: ‘why I do not join, I am naturally looking for Lepidoptera everywhere’ and because the event specialized in moths, I decided to make overnight camping in the forest.”

He chose  a mountainous area close to a large lake, “part of the coastal mountain range in western Syria, overlooking the Mediterranean Sea,” where he hopes to discover new species.

Mudar says he is still learning about the  moths of Syria, but believes there are many species that deserve attention. “There may be species that are not described in the rest of the world,” he writes. “I think that Syria is the ideal place to get samples from them. “

He hopes to get IDs for his moth photos to properly identify them. National Moth Week recommends that moth-ers submit their photos to our partner organizations listed on the website.  Experts will assist will identification.

Mudar laments that moth watching is not very popular in Syria.

“I live in a country where the war began eight years ago and has not yet ended. This means that there will not be many people to join in the event and maybe I will be there with one or two of my friends,” he said.  

“But that will not be frustrating,” he said. ” I am doing this to enjoy myself and certainly will not be alone.”

Mudar’s Syrian Butterflies (and moths) website – click here

_______________

Sandy Lanman

The spotlight will be on nighttime nature as National Moth Week 2016 has its official kickoff on Saturday, July 23 with an evening of mothing at Davidson’s Mill Pond Park, 42 Riva Avenue in South Brunswick.

The event will run from 8 to 11:30 p.m. and is free and open to the public. Visitors are advised to wear sneakers or sturdy shoes and bring a flashlight. Rain date will be Sunday, July 24. In the event of inclement weather, information will be posted on friendsebec.com.

The event is a collaboration between the Middlesex County Office of Parks and Recreation and the Friends of the East Brunswick Environmental Commission (Friends of EBEC) to mark the start of the fifth annual National Moth Week, an international citizen science project, which runs from July 23 to 31 this year.

National Moth Week was established in 2012 by the Friends of EBEC, a nonprofit organization dedicated to conservation and education, to help raise awareness about the beauty, biodiversity and ecological importance of moths, which are among the most important pollinators in the natural world.

It immediately drew international attention, with events registered in 49 states and 29 countries around the world. Since then, National Moth Week events have been held each year in all 50 states and a total of 65 countries. National Parks and National Monuments such as the Grand Canyon, Acadia National Park, Carlsbad Caverns, White Sands and this year, Denali in Alaska, hold moth-watching events.

“We’re very excited to be kicking of this year’s National Moth Week with the Middlesex County Office of Parks and Recreation,” said National Moth Week co-founder Liti Haramaty. “Davidson’s Mill Pond Park is the perfect location because it is already dedicated to protecting native pollinators with pollinator boxes and pollinator ‘hotels’” and a seasonal butterfly house.

Citizen scientists of all ages and abilities are encouraged to go outside to observe and document moths through photos and other information that can then be submitted online to international and regional organizations that collect data on the distribution and diversity of moths.

Members of the National Moth Week team, including co-founders Haramaty and David Moskowitz, will be on hand to help with identification.

People of all ages and abilities can participate, and backyard private events are also encouraged. For more information, email info@nationalmothweek.org or go to nationalmothweek.org.

“This is an exciting event that will ultimately help our environment,” said Middlesex County Freeholder Director Ronald G. Rios. “Pollination is so very important to the health of our ecosystem, and this event will help us do our part for the environment.”

“The very fact that this event was the catalyst for events nationally and even internationally proves its importance,” said Freeholder Charles E. Tomaro. “I applaud the Friends of the East Brunswick Environmental Commission and all who will participate for their commitment to our environment, both locally and on a much larger scale.”

Media Contact: Sandra Lanman

sandra@lanmanpr.com

###

In June 2016 Reaktion Books are launching Matthew Gandy’s fascinating new book, ‘Moth‘, which explores the animal’s crucial role in history around the world. Click here for the Book Launch event in London.

Moth

“We know that moths are attracted to light, but what attracted you to moths?”

I have been puzzling over this question ever since it was posed to me a few weeks ago by a biochemist.  I think my childhood curiosity for insects was initially spurred by noticing bees, bugs, and other insects, but especially butterflies, which descended in great numbers every summer onto the buddleia bushes that grew in the former “bomb sites” and wastelands of London.  Butterflies often serve as an “entomological portal” to the vast and mysterious world of moths: whilst the UK has only around 60 species of butterflies there are over 2,500 species of moths (including only a tiny number that can truly be considered pests or devourers of woollen clothes).  In practice, however, the distinction between moths and butterflies has always been more cultural than taxonomic in origin since they are grouped together under the same order called “Lepidoptera” (on account of the distinctive scales on their wings that give rise to the enormous range of colours and patterns).  Even the observation that most moths fly by night is only part of the full story of their diversity and fascinating life histories: there are actually more species of day-flying moths than there are species of butterflies.

As a teenager I bought a moth trap consisting of a bright mercury vapour bulb that attracted nocturnal species that would spiral towards the light during the night, falling down into a plastic drum where the moths would settle under egg boxes so that they could be observed the next day, after which they were released unharmed back into their environment.  Even in the heart of London there were dozens of species I had never encountered before such as the Dog’s Tooth, the Setaceous Hebrew Character, and the Shuttle-shaped Dart.  The names were a source of fascination in themselves.  And then I tried using the moth trap one warm and humid July night in the Teifi Valley, West Wales, and experienced what I would describe as the “entomological sublime”: moths swirled about me from every direction, just as the German writer W.G. Sebald has described in his novel Austerlitz, whilst dozens of bats swooped between the trees.  I will never forget the passage of a Barn Owl overhead, eerily lit up by the light of the moth trap against the deep darkness of the sky.  The next morning there were over a thousand jewels awaiting me of every conceivable shape and colour.  There were dozens of hawk-moths that I had previously only seen depicted in the striking plates of identification guides such as Richard South’s Moths of the British Isles.  I was hooked.

But moths are far more than just a focus of intrigue and delight.  They constitute a vital component of global bio-diversity, reaching their peak diversity in the Andes.  Many individual species serve as sensitive indicators, demonstrating the effects of environmental degradation, ranging from the creeping menace of climate change to the irreversible destruction of complex ecosystems.   Moths also play a significant role in pollination including species that have co-evolved with specific plants such as the remarkable relationship between a long-tongued hawk-moth and a long-spurred orchid in Madagascar that was first realized by Charles Darwin.  There is even a moth that has shaped human history:  the silk trade could not have emerged without the domesticated silk moth and its diligent “worm” (caterpillar) that produces the finest, strongest, and most versatile thread that has ever been known.  Whether visiting our dreams or circling around street lights the moth is undoubtedly one of the wonders of nature.

 ———————————————————————————–

 

A special offer for National Moth Week participants and followers: Order the book at a special 20% discount! To take advantage of the offer – go to www.reaktionbooks.co.uk and enter the special discount code NMW20 at the checkout. The offer will end on 31 August 2016.

Outside the UK the book will be available on Amazon.com: Moth (Animal) Paperback – July 15, 2016 by Matthew Gandy (Author)

 ———————————————————————————–

Registration is open for National Moth Week 2016 (July 23-31, everywhere).  To register click here. 

To find public events in your area – click here. 

For the past two years, we (the Central Texas Master Naturalists) have had a rough time finding moths during National Moth Week. The last week of July apparently isn’t the best time to look for moths in Central Texas. The best time seems to be around May; however, we look forward to being among the thousands of individuals and scores of organizations around the world participating in National Moth Week year after year. This year we have partnered with Texas Parks and Wildlife – Mother Neff State Park to set up in a more remote location.
This year our event will be taking place at the new 3,800-square-foot headquarters at Mother Neff State Park. The park entry fee will be waived for the evening; gates open at 7:45pm. Participants will have a chance to visit historical displays about the Civilian Conservation Corps contributions to the state parks system, plus review history about Mother Neff and see what else there is to explore at the park during the day. The park store will be open late and even if it rains there will be plenty of moth related activities inside. Outside, you will find a black light setup with the Central Texas Master Naturalists helping you identify what critters you are finding under the night sky. You will learn what critters go bump in the night, learn why they are important, and how to use a field guide to identify them. If you are feeling adventurous, you might even go on a moth scavenger hunt or spider sniffing.
In the past, we have uploaded data to DiscoverLife.org, but this year we are submitting data to the National Moth Week project via the smartphone app iNaturalist. iNaturalist has proven to be simple to use. We hope to encourage participants to continue to get outside and look closer at the natural world and report what they see. We strive to show participants how easy it is to become a Citizen Scientist to help the ‘real’ scientists around the world be at all the places they can’t. For more information, please visit: http://txmn.org/centraltexas/central-texas-moth-night-2016/.
The Central Texas Master Naturalists (CTMN) is a 501(c)(3) non-profit that serves Bell County and the surrounding areas. CTMN is part of the Texas Master Naturalists Program, a state-wide program designed to develop a corps of well-informed volunteers who provide education, outreach and service dedicated to the beneficial management of natural resources and natural areas within their communities for the State of Texas.

——————————————————————————–

Registration is open for National Moth Week 2016 (July 23-31, everywhere).  To register click here. 

To see registered events and find public events in your area – click here. 

NMW participant Marcie O’Connor wrote about her event, or Moth Party, on her blog ‘Prairie Haven‘.  The party included hiking, food and of course moths…  There was no moth cake this year, but Anne promised to make one for next year’s Moth Party.

To read more about Prairie Haven’s Moth Party – click here.

————————————————————————————————–

National Moth Week 2016 will be held July 23-31. Click here to register and event.